If there was a turning point in the women's basketball season, it was probably the turning of the calendar from 2008 to 2009.
On Dec. 31, the Quakers (3-14, 0-3 Ivy) defeated St. Francis for their third win in four games. Since then, Penn has lost seven straight, including three in the Ivy League.
It's no coincidence that the swoon corresponded with a foot injury to Sarah Bucar. The junior has not played since that St. Francis win, and Penn has struggled to find a suitable replacement at point guard.
Freshman Tyler Cumbo may be the heir apparent at the point, but she often struggles to run Penn's set offenses and is prone to defensive lapses.
Anca Popovici and Caitlin Slover have also both been used as replacements, but they do not excel at creating their own shots, which becomes important when opposing teams lock down on seniors Carrie Biemer and Kelly Scott.
Penn mustered a season-low 39 points with 22 turnovers to only eight assists against Dartmouth Saturday. And after Biemer had scored in double digits in 27 consecutive games, she has been limited to under 10 points in two of the last three games.
Dartmouth's perimeter defense may provide a blueprint for teams looking to exploit the Quakers' depleted roster.
"There are ways to screen against switching defenses," coach Pat Knapp said. "We have to get a hell of a lot better at that."
Knapp also cited a litany of other problems - "bad recognition, poor passing, screening and not slipping and not enough post-ups" - but whether it's a coaching problem or a roster problem, the solutions remain murky.
Though Bucar does not sport particularly gaudy stats - she has averaged 5.9 points per game, still good enough for third on the team - she provides intangibles that could make her eventual return a big lift for the Quakers.
As Biemer said last month, the team misses Bucar's "maturity on the court and her leadership." And if anything, Penn's offensive woes appear to have only gotten worse since then.
But Knapp pointed out after a loss to Seton Hall on Jan. 27 that Bucar is not the only missing piece. Penn has also been without freshmen Jess Knapp and Jourdan Banks.
"Nobody has any idea what they would have done to our depth, or to our competition, or to our scoring," he said.
Conspicuously absent from Knapp's comments - but nonetheless implicit in any discussion of the shorthanded roster - are Maggie Burgess and Kim Adams, both of whom quit the team for personal reasons after combining for 13.6 points per game on 49.8 percent shooting last season.
As for Bucar, she has been running in practice, and the team hopes she will be ready to play this weekend.
And compared to powerhouses Harvard and Dartmouth, Columbia and Cornell should provide an easier chance for Penn to right the ship.
"They're totally different teams than the two we just met," Knapp said. "As far as style, as far as athletes, as far as size, they're totally different ."
